Ivan Rabb had 19 points, 20 rebounds, three blocked shots and made the game-winning free throw with 0.8 seconds left, lifting Bishop O’Dowd to a 65-64 win over Mater Dei in the California state open division title game at Haas Pavilion.

But he did not immediately give Cal fans the news they were hoping to hear.

The sense all day was that Rabb would pick Cal over Arizona, and would make the announcement right after the game.

Rabb said afterward he wasn’t ready to make an immediate commitment. Wanted to keep the spotlight on his team and the Dragons’ championship celebration.

“It’s not about me, it’s not about where I’m going to school right now, it’s about putting this ring on our fingers and bring a state title to my school,” Rabb told reporters.

If that’s an insight into his character and what kind of teammate he can be, an encouraging sign for whichever teams get him.

Cal quarterback Jared Goff tweeted his impressions of the young O’Dowd star:

@YoungIvee sounds like a great kid. Hope he comes to Cal, but wish him nothing but the best with whatever he chooses to do #GoBears

The game was close throughout, and the 6-foot-10 Rabb added to the drama when he he nearly airballed his first free throw with 0.8 seconds left. Then he converted the second one to earn O’Dowd its first state title since 1981.

“The way the game ended, you couldn’t’ have written a story better than this,” Rabb said. “It’s not about me, it’s about my teammates. They pushed me to get to this point, we pushed each other and I’m just thankful.”

*****

Caleb Swanigan, the five-star center Cal is pursuing, led Homestead-Fort Wayne to a 91-90 win over Reitz-Evansville for the Indiana state 4A title.

University of Memphis athletic director Tom Bowen is one of two finalists for the Cal AD job, the Commercial Appeal in Memphis is reporting.

Bowen, 53, a former Cal associate athletic director and the AD at San Jose State for seven years, has been mentioned as a possible candidate since last summer.

The Memphis newspaper said Bowen and Cal interim AD Michael Williams are the two finalists.

Bowen declined to confirm anything when approached Wednesday by the Commercial Appeal.

“I’m happy at Memphis. This is where I am, this is where I want to be,” he said. “We’re doing great work and I’m excited about what we’re doing.

“Again, I’m not going to comment on all this (Cal) talk, noise, social media (reports). I’m very pleased and happy and love being the athletic director at the University of Memphis. That’s been my statement all along and this continues to come up.”

Williams, a Cal graduate, initially said he was not interested in the permanent job when he took the interim assignment after Sandy Barbour was fired last June. But on Feb. 9 he told this newspaper he now wants the job.

Bowen, a graduate of Notre Dame, has deep roots in the Bay Area. He was athletic director at De La Salle High from 1987 through ’95, spent a brief time in 2000 as acting AD at Saint Mary’s College, then worked from 2000 through 2002 at Cal as an associate AD for development.

He ran the athletic department at San Jose State for seven years before being hired at Memphis in June 2012.

From the day he arrived on campus until last week when he said no thanks to an invite from the third-tier CBI tournament, first-year Cal coach Cuonzo Martin has made it clear he intends to swing for the fences.

Martin wants to compete for a national championship at Cal and his recruiting efforts have been in line with those aspirations: the Bears appear to be among the finalists for three five-star prospects rated by Scout.com as the No. 1 center, power forward and small forward in the country.

Within the next several weeks we will know whether Martin can defy the odds by signing one or more of them, or will be left empty-handed. The spring signing period begins April 15.

Here are the three players at the top of Martin’s recruiting wish list:

* IVAN RABB: The 6-foot-10, 220-pound power forward from Oakland’s Bishop O’Dowd High has been a priority for Martin and his staff since they landed in Berkeley. Rated by Scout as the No. 5 overall prospect and No. 1 power forward, Rabb leads O’Dowd (ranked No. 8 nationally by USA Today) into Saturday’s California open division state title game against No. 10 Mater Dei at Cal’s Haas Pavilion. Tipoff is 8 p.m. Rabb, also considering Arizona, Kansas, Kentucky and UCLA, had 18 points and 18 rebounds last week as the Dragons improved to 27-4 with a win over Modesto Christian in the NorCal title game.

* CALEB SWANIGAN: A 6-9, 265-pounder from Homestead High (28-2) in Fort Wayne, Indiana, Swanigan was named Mr. Basketball in Indiana and rated by Scout as the nation’s top center prospect. He made an official visit to Cal on Feb. 27, but has a long list of suitors, including Duke, Georgetown, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan State and Purdue. Swanigan had 40 points and 17 rebounds in Homestead’s state 4A semifinal win over South Bend Riley and goes for the state title Saturday against 29-1 Evansville Reitz, rated No. 23 nationally by USA Today.

* JAYLEN BROWN: Rated by Scout as the nation’s No. 1 overall prospect, the 6-7, 215-pound small forward made a quiet, unofficial visit to Cal last Sunday and Monday, further muddling his recruiting picture. Everyone wants Brown, who used his five official recruiting visits to check out Kansas, Kentucky, UCLA, North Carolina and Michigan. He averaged 28 points and 12 rebounds at Wheeler-Marietta, Georgia, the same high school that produced one-time Cal star Shareef Abdur-Rahim. Wheeler is rated No. 5 in the country by USA Today after finishing 30-2 as Georgia’s 6A state champion.

Ivan Rabb, Cal’s No. 1 recruiting target, had 18 points, 18 rebounds and five blocked shots, leading Bishop O’Dowd High to a 56-47 win over Modesto Christian in the CIF NorCal open division title game at the Sleep Train Arena in Sacramento.

The top-seeded Dragons earned a rematch in the state championship game against Southern California winner Mater Dei, which beat O’Dowd 71-61 in the 2014 state title game.

Rabb, a 6-foot-10 forward, is rated a consensus top-10 national prospect by recruiting services. He lists Cal among his five final schools, also including Arizona and Kentucky.

Sophomore Missy Franklin captured her third individual title, leading the Cal women’s swim team to its fourth NCAA championship in seven years on Saturday at Greensboro, N.C.

Franklin won the 200-yard backstroke and Cal finished with a school-record 513 points to easily top runnerup Georgia (452) and third-place Stanford (363).

Cal had previously won NCAA women’s swim titles in 2009, 2011 and 2012. The Bears won seven events, equaling their total from the 2011 championships.

Franklin, star of the 2012 London Olympics, was named NCAA Swimmer of the Year after having a hand in five victories, including two relays. Cal coach Teri McKeever was named National Coach of the Year.

“I’m so grateful for the experience that I’ve had,” Franklin said. “It’s been a very emotional couple of days and I am just so proud of my team and what we’ve accomplished here.”

In the 200 back final, Franklin trailed entering the final 50 yards but stormed from behind to win in 1:47.91, second-fastest in history.

Cal finished second in the 400 freestyle relay in a school-record time of 3:09.76, with Franklin leading off in 46.66 seconds, a school record for the 100 free.

Cierra Runge finished second in the 1,650 free, Cal’s highest NCAA finisher ever in the event.

Missy Franklin set an American record in the 200-yard freestyle and the Cal women won four events Friday to move into the team lead at the NCAA championships in Greensboro, N.C.

Franklin became the first women to break 1 minute, 40 seconds in the 200 free, clocking 1:39.10.

“I’ve been thinking about that (1) 39 literally all season, so to finally get it – words can’t describe,” Franklin said. “I got my hand to the wall and got the most points I could for my team, and that’s what matters most.”

The Bears built an 84-point lead over Georgia in the race for the team title. Cal has scored 383.5 points headed into Saturday’s final races. Stanford is third, 119.5 points behind the Bears.

In additional to Franklin’s record-setting victory, the Bears captured the 200 medley relay and 800 free relay, and Rachel Bootsma won the 100 backstroke.

For Alabama-Birmingham coach Jarod Haase, Saturday’s NCAA tournament game against UCLA will be framed by an entirely different set of circumstances than the first time he faced the Bruins.

At stake for Haase and the 14th-seeded Blazers is a spot in next week’s Sweet 16. For a school that dropped its football program in December, the opportunity is a joyous occasion.

In 1993, when he and Jason Kidd formed an all-freshman backcourt at Cal, Haase took on the Bruins with a somber heart.

His father, Gary Haase, a 55-year-old Cal grad, had died unexpectedly the day before of causes stemming from an infection in his spleen after being checked into a hospital with an ankle infection.

Then-Cal coach Lou Campanelli gave Haase the option of returning to his family home in South Lake Tahoe rather than remain with the team in Los Angeles. He stayed, explaining that his father would have wanted it that way.

Haase and the Bears responded with a spectacular performance, routing the Bruins 104-82. It was UCLA’s worst loss at Pauley Pavilion since its opening 27 years before, and prompted legendary Bruins coach John Wooden – who attended the game – to say, “I never thought we’d be behind by this margin at home to anybody.”

Haase played 30 minutes and contributed 16 points and five assists to Cal’s most one-sided win over UCLA since 1923. Afterward, he allowed himself a quick smile as he left the court.